Exam One - Spinal Cord Flashcards
What can damage to the spinal cord lead to?
altered sensation and loss of motor function
What are the 3 layers of the developing spinal cord?
Ependymal
Mantle
Marginal
What is the significance of the ependymal layer?
lines the central canal
What is the significance of the mantle layer?
In the grey matter
Alar plate: sensory
Basal plate: motor
Why is the sulcus limitans important?
separates the alar and basal plate in the mantle layer
What is the significance of the marginal layer?
white matter of the developing spinal cord
At what point in development does the sulcus limitans form?
4th week
Is alar plate sensory or motor? anterior or posterior horn?
sensory, posterior horn
Is basal plate sensory or motor? anterior or posterior horn?
motor, anterior horn
The SC develops from the _______ portion of the neural tube
caudal
Rachischisis
- the posterior neuropore fails to close by embryonic day 27
- undifferentiated neuroectoderm remains exposed
- accompanies cranial neural tube defects such as anencephaly, acrania, and myleomeningocele
Rachischisis is the more severe subtype of ______________
spina bifida cycstica
Where is the origin of the spinal cord?
foramen magnum
What level is considered the end of the spinal cord?
L1-L2
True or False? The spinal cord has no clear anatomical segmentation but a strong functional segmentation
True
Where do spinal nerves exit the vertebral column?
Through the intervertebral foramina
What is the last section of the sacral spinal cord called?
conus medullaris
What is the area beneath the conus medullaris called?
cauda equina
How many spinal cord segments are there?
31 total
8 cervical
12 thoracic
5 lumbar
5 sacral
1 coccygeal
True or False? Each pain of nerves exits the vertebral column at the level with which it lined up at birth
True
At what point in utero does the spinal cord and vertebral column have roughly the same length and the lower spinal nerves are directly opposite their respective intervertebral foramina?
12 weeks
C4 dermatome
shoulders
C5 derm
lateral upper arm
C6 derm
radial forearm, thumb
C7 derm
Middle finger
C8
ulnar, hand, little finger
T4
nipple
T10
umbilicus
L1
groin
L3
knee
L5
dorsal foot, big toe
S1
lateral foot, heel
S3-5
Genito-anal region
What level of the spinal cord has the thickest white matter? Grey matter?
White - cervical
Grey - sacral
Why does the cervical level have the most white matter?
most ascending fibers have already entered SC but most descending fibers have not yet exited the cord
Which level of SC has the least amount of grey matter?
thoracic